


Love's a Walk in the Park

by AParticularlyLargeBear



Series: A Particularly Modern Thedas [4]
Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-24
Updated: 2016-11-24
Packaged: 2018-09-01 20:21:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8636860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AParticularlyLargeBear/pseuds/AParticularlyLargeBear
Summary: Sera gets curious about whether she's her girlfriend's first, well, girlfriend.





	

A walk out in the park was worryingly domestic. If Sera didn't know any better, she'd be getting worried that she was  _settling down_.

There had to be some kind of weird couples magic involved if her girlfriend could convince her to go out for a walk on a bright and clear autumn afternoon that was nevertheless so cold Sera was freezing her frigging tits off.

Okay, maybe it wasn't that cold, but it wasn't tanktop weather.  _Irala._

But it did give her an excuse to sneak herself underneath her girlfriend's arm and snuggle up close to her. It wasn't all bad.

"We should come out on a run with me sometime," Irala said absently as they walked, hand on Sera's far shoulder.

"Nooooo way," Sera told her, grumbling. Irala already worked in a gym, and then she worked out some more on her days off. Nutter. "I like my arse unfrozen, thanks."

"You warm up by running. Trust me, the town's so pretty in the morning."

Sera scoffed. "You know what else is warm? My bed. Under the covers."

Irala raised an eyebrow. "Naughty," she hummed it, and the shiver that ran through Sera had nothing to do with the cold.

"Shut it, you."

She laughed, hard and hearty. Irala didn't flirt very much, so it invariably caught Sera off guard whenever she sprung something on her.

Sera poked her in the ribs in petty revenge. Arse.

Tucked closely into one another, they continued along the pathway, stopping occasionally so that Sera could stir up piles of leaves and send them blustering off on the wind. There was just enough of a breeze to carry if she disturbed them from their spots, and it was always... neat to just watch then go skidding and scuttering along the ground. Like little mini racecars with no track but their own.

It wasn't everyone's idea of romantic, but they were getting to spend time together, and that was what counted. It was them, not anyone else, yeah?

Humm... anyone else.

Thinking about others was strange. Not like consideration - Sera could do that. Just, well, others. After all, Sera and Irala weren't always Sera and Irala. There wasn't always a  _them_. There hadn't been a them when they'd first met and not for months after that. Irala had always been single whilst Sera had known her, but...

Shite. she was curious now.

She was going to have to ask or this was gonna bug her all frigging day.

"Hey, Irri."

"What's up?"

Sera gave her a sidelong glance. This question shouldn't make her nervous. It was just a question! But it did, kind of. 

"You ever date, before?"

Irala blinked. "Before...?"

"Before me, stupid!"

She laughed, aimed a flick at Sera's head, which she deftly dodged. "You have a way with words."

"As long as you get it, right?" people wasted too much time with words, in her opinion. Just say what you meant, it was easier.

Irala shrugged. "No," she replied, shortly.

Sera eyed her. "What, like not ever?"

Her answer was a dubious look, which broke into a smile just a little too slowly. "I know I know, stunning that nobody landed me sooner."

"Just, well..." Sera twisted her hands together. "I can't be your  _first_ girlfriend," Irala was a couple years older, right? And she was friends with Krem  _and_ Bull. No way they didn't try and hook her up with someone, they were like queer central.

Another shrug. "I had crushes, if that's what you're getting at. Nothing serious."

"Oh. 'Kay," Sera paused, nudged up a little closer to Irala. "So, come on!"

Another shrug. "What's got you so interested in when I was a gay-in-training?"

Sera snorted into a fit of giggles. "Stealing that," she shifted from foot to foot. "But, I dunno. Just curious. Like, you made a move on me, right?"

"Yeah. I was totally smooth."

They exchanged another glance, and then both grinned at the same time. Irala had come onto her by singing drunken karaoke at the Hanged Man. Usually she was a good singer. Less so when trying to belt out a ballad whilst so wasted she was propping herself up with the microphone stand.

"'Spose that I'm just wondering how'd you come up with that, if you've never done it before and all."

"Bull."

" _Just_ Bull?"

Irala hesitated, sighed, and then stopped walking. "Yeah, okay. Fair enough," she looked into Sera's eyes, then away, self-consciously rubbing the back of her head. "So... in the clans we're taught to be open about our affections, but there's also ... well, there's a way of doing things," as always when talking about the dalish, Irala's accent crept in that little bit thicker.

Sera tried to stay focused on what her girlfriend was saying and not just switch off. They didn't talk about dalish elves very much, mostly not to argue. "Way...?"

"You know, there's a..." Irala broke off, rolled her wrist. "A uh,  _courting_ procedure."

Sera blinked, and then frowned. "What, you have to say it all elfy that you like someone?" a thought occurred to her, and she scowled. "They don't try and stop you from liking other girls, right?" they'd  _better_ not!

Irala straightened, and her eyes widened a little. "No no no, nothing like that. We're told to cherish and celebrate love in the clan, whoever it's for. You're just expected to observe the right traditions."

Still sounded kind of like junk, but at least they weren't down on young people in that spot. Sera nodded.

"Well, there was a girl I met during  _arlathvhen-_ " she paused. "That's the gathering of clans in one place. She was from a nearby clan and I, uh, well, I had a thing for her."

"Awww, lil Irri in love!" Sera teased, because she was  _not_ feeling jealous over some dalish girl from however-many-years ago. Was not! Besides, they hadn't even been a thing, yeah?

"I was sixteen. Still could have bench pressed you."

"Woof."

Irala laughed, then shook her head. "Anyway. Her clan wound up moving away and I just... I guess I never got round to telling her."

Sera actually felt more sympathetic than she'd expected. Losing out cause you got hung up over doing it  _right_ was total rubbish, and not even just a dalish thing. Everyone could mess up timing like that.

"Sooo," Irala scuffed her boot on the floor. "Since then, I just always told myself that if someone special came along, I wouldn't let my chance slip again."

Oh. Well. Shite. Um. Shite.

That hadn't been what she'd been fishing for.

Sera laughed nervously. "I, hahah, uh, well..."

"That means you're special," Irala ruffled her hair, and Sera let out an indignant squawk.

"You arsebutt! Ruined the moment!"

Irala grinned, and then ducked, just a little.

Sera stared at her. "Uh... what're you-frig!"

Strong, muscular arms scooped her straight up off the ground, Irala hefting her up effortlessly.

"Rescuing the moment," Irala told her with a shrug, and then dipped down and kissed her on the nose.

Sera giggled again, linking her hands around the back of her girlfriend's neck. "Yeah, yeah, okay. You saved it."

"Of course. I'm a hero. Why else would I have such an awesome girlfriend?"

"Pfff... love you too, elfyface."

For a little while, they both forgot about morning runs, leaves, and even the cold.


End file.
